Refreshing summer fun is closer to becoming a reality at Seymour Lake Township Park.
That’s because Oxford Township Parks and Recreation secured the remainder of a grant designed to help finance the cost of building the Kids Love Recreation (KLR) SplashPad.
Parks Director Ron Davis had originally applied for a $240,000 grant for the splashpad. Initially, Oxford was sent only $192,000, but eventually, after what Davis described as ‘politicking?, the remaining $48,000 of the grant was sent. The parks and rec. commission is planning to put $100,000 from its budget into the $390,000 splashpad, and they’re also looking for more donations to further finance it.
By the time all the amenities are included in the project ? parking lot, lanscaping, flagpole, etc. ? Davis estimated the entire project would cost almost $500,000.
According to Davis, sometime around late April or early May 2009 ground will be broken for the Splashpad with the grand opening taking place on Fourth of July weekend about two months later.
The pad will be 6,200 square feet and enclosed with vinyl fencing. It features a map of the United States, has vibrant colors and is slip resistant.
For safety concerns, it will be constructed in accordance with the American Society for Testing and Materials and will be Americans with Disabilities Act accessible. There will also be a two percent decline from the furthest edge to the center. This allows for no standing water, said Parks Director Ron Davis.
The splashpad features poles that stick up out of the ground and are designed to spray water. Among them are water tunnel sprayers, pelican pal fountain and the misting bullfrog. The pad also features magic touch activation bollards systems that allow water to be sprayed by stepping on certain spots on the floor of the structure.
The splashpad features three areas: Adventure Bay, Action Bay/Energy Alley and Discovery Bay.
The splashpad is designed to accent the Kids Kingdom playground at Seymour, Davis said, and it would be the first complete universally-accessible designed facility of its kind within a 20-mile radius. It would also would allow for ‘independent aquatic play? no matter a person’s age or disability.
‘Individuals who experience physical, emotional or hearing disabilities will foster friendships, create memories and fulfill personal dreams at the Splashpad,? Davis wrote in the grant. ‘As an article in the ‘National Center of Accessibility? found, aquatic recreation activities consistently work as the most popular activities for the disabled. The K.L.R. Splashpad will quantify these findings by providing countless aquatic opportunities that currently do not exist.?
The park is also getting a new basketball court, for which the asphalt has already been laid, and a new parking lot. The mostly-gravel parking lot will be adjacent to the new Splashpad right across from the sled hill. Davis said they’ve received 12 bids and will soon be choosing one. The lot will also have asphalt paving for the handicapped and will include sidewalks, picnic shelter and drainage, along with bathrooms for the new Splashpad site. About 60-75 cars will fit into the parking lot.
Finally, new bathrooms recently opened at Kids? Kingdom. These facilities replace porta johns and make it more convenient and accessible to parents, kids and seniors at the kingdom. All the bathrooms are ADA-accessible.
Like the basketball court, the bathrooms were done entirely on donations. ‘There were a lot of players involved and since it was done on donations, that’s why it took so long,? Davis said, adding that the project has been in motion since 2007.
The bathroom project would have cost taxpayers $50,000.